RIO DE JANEIRO, May 15 (Reuters) - For the first time in
nearly five years, Brazil's flagging oil industry has received
serious interest from private investors.

Brazil's oil agency, the ANP, sold 142 exploration areas to
39 companies from 12 countries on Tuesday, wrapping up the
scheduled two-day auction in just one day. It was the first
auction since a decade of annual sales ended in 2008.